Rates ticked up very slightly, remaining essentially flat last week. For example, 30 year fixed fell 0.01 point while 15 year fixed rose 0.03 points.
Comments Off
The PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy) program allows local governments to sell municipal bonds to finance homeowner clean energy improvements on their home, Loans are treated as a special property tax and homeowners have 15 to 20 years to pay back the loan (see our post “
Financing Villains: Freddie And Fannie” for additional background).
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), regulators of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, raised concerns that these are first-lien loans. This puts the lender in a secondary position in case of default. It told Fannie and Freddie to avoid financing homes with PACE loans.
Supporters of PACE point out that this is no different than a special tax assessment for street repairs.
Representatives Waxman and Frank ask government agencies to tweak PACE so neither taxpayers nor mortgage investors are likely to lose money. Let’s hope something is done for the PACE program can fund valuable homeowner “green initiatives.”
Comments Off
Foreign buyers of property in the U.S. are showing greater interest because of the current value of real estate, the promise of an economic recovery and continued desirability of U.S. property.
The states that attract foreign buyers are those closest to a buyer’s home country and shorter travel time. California, Florida, Arizona and Texas account for 53 percent of purchases by a foreigner; or, have a significant climate difference/advantage.
Foreigners also buy higher end properties. 16 percent of international buyers spent $500,000 or more on their purchase.
You can read a summary of the National Association of REALTORS® study
here.
Comments Off
